​Happenings at FYI Dance Club!!!We’re halfway through Term 2! I find after settling in during Term 1 time tends to speed up as we gain momentum and raise productivity! Term 1 finished with a bang, with Halloween themed classes (full on with costumes, Halloween dance games and spooky routines), which coinciding with Bring-A-Friend-Week made for a hilarious (and somewhat chaotic, ahem) classes. I nearly didn’t make it out alive (no pun intended!!) The Halloween break was a welcome reprieve and a chance to catch up with myself and all the goals I had had set at the start of Term 1.

One goal was to get to see a show, but I actually got to see two! The first was Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty, a modern adaptation fusing contemporary dance with ballet influences and even brought act two into the 21st century. I had seen Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake last year (thank you husband for the gift) and was blown away by his interpretation of this classic ballet story. I definitely was not disappointed this time around and can firmly claim I am now a devoted fan of his work! It was so refreshing to experience ballet theatre without a Nutcracker in sight!! Haha! We have been limited in our experience of touring companies but the Bord Gais Theatre seems to be attracting more and more dance companies to grace our shores (including some fantastic musical theatre!!).

The second show required me to take a trip on two planes and six trains to get there and back (now four of them were on the London Underground so it wasn't QUITE as dramatic as I'm making out!!). I headed on a day trip to London to see Hip Hop company ZooNation perform their original West End production of ‘Into The Hoods’, first put on in 2006, this was the ‘Remixed’ version. I was lucky enough to take a class with ZooNation’s founder and choreographer Kate Prince at Hip Hop Don’t Stop (the Streetdance Camp I attend to brush up on my skills) in Easter 2012 and returned to see their production of ‘Some Like It Hip Hop” in June of the same year. ZooNation are the only Hip Hop company to perform on the West End and the original 'Into The Hoods' is the longest running show on the West End! So when my husband remarked that I was ‘going to a lot of trouble just to see a show' (I hear you all gasp!!) I can confidently say it was worth it. It is difficult to find full-length, stand-alone Hip Hop productions (if you ever hear of one please let me know!!). Here’s hoping Diversity have another trilogy coming soon!!Here’s some footage of the original cast: https://youtu.be/Jlq48nnJpkQ and the trailer for Remixed: https://youtu.be/wjdarOR20Ho and https://youtu.be/dy6enS8akO4

While I was travelling I also managed to squeeze in some study with Daniel Coyles The Talent Code: Greatness isn’t Born, its Grown. A fascinating read about talent hot spots around the world and the factors that contribute to world talent from all areas of greatness: football, singers, tennis players, musicians etc. I have been chatting to the students this week about my findings (one student groaned at me that this was a dance class not a science class! Haha). My studies on Brain Gym (Educational Kinesiology) and Autism Awareness continues.